Does anyone else think that we should start giving Ware more opportunities on the strong side? If we start utilizing him on both sides of the field, we should be able to create better match ups... no?

Give me an example. I'm having trouble visualizing how this would work.

Well I'm pretty sure Joey Porter is used interchangeably on both sides. I may be oversimplifying the idea, but it would seem beneficial for our Defense if we could confuse offenses by aligning Ware in different spots and taking advantage of mismatches. It wouldn't work if he wasn't effective, but I'd like to give him a chance to show what he could do on the Strong side. He seems to have the right combination of size and skills to do it. Last year it might've been wrong to try it, but with his weight gain, ever growing experience, and Ellis' injury, this year might be a good time to try it.

I'm sure he could play on the strong side. Do you mean just switching with Carpenter/whoever is playing the other side? Or do you mean subbing in Burnett? Do you mean for a play or too or for an extended period of time?

I think it could be an effective way of giving players a break and getting new guys playing time. Maybe make some special packages out of moving him around.

I don't like the idea against the Colts because of how structured their offense is, but I could see it against other teams I guess. It still might be a little much to give to this defense in it's second year of transitioning, maybe not.

i hate to double post, but no one has found any source that cites the number of touchdowns each DB has given up?

I don't think a site like that exists. The big problem is that nobody other than the coaches can really know for sure who the responsibility of each TD goes to. Only the coach could really make a site like that with the correct numbers and it wouldn't make much sense for him to do something like that to his players.

i hate to double post, but no one has found any source that cites the number of touchdowns each DB has given up?

I don't think a site like that exists. The big problem is that nobody other than the coaches can really know for sure who the responsibility of each TD goes to. Only the coach could really make a site like that with the correct numbers and it wouldn't make much sense for him to do something like that to his players.

Yeah, I couldn't imagine Parcells typing away on a computer. Not even sure if he knows what a computer is.

there has to be some way of tracking it doesnt there? On espn's all indespensible team that says Newman is the only corner who hasnt givne up a td since 04 had to find out somehow, right? Ive been keep track since that came out and he's shut down plax, steve smith, randle el, and whoever else hes been up against.

I also read somehwere else (wish i would of saved the link so i could show you guys) that newman is only thrown at something like 4.9 times per game which is lowest in the league. In comparrison to Deion, he had a career average of only 2.1 times per game, which is amazing. I always though of Deion as amazing but having only 2 passes thrown your way a game over an entire career for a 2 sport athlete is out of this world.

If any of you are wondering, no i am not like balaskoins, but i first started paying attention to drafting, stats and percentages after we drafted roy williams. Before that i was a little too young to appreciate those types of things. SO i am really interested in finding a site where i can watch the progress of all the big name DB's in the league just to see how they match up to their hype.

I like players like Newman, Mcallister, Bailey (told t-new "ill see you in hawaii"), Bodden (he actually got chad johnsons respect which is a feat in itself) Clements, and a few others that im not ready to make a concrete judgement on yet.

Notice i left Hall off of the list. Ive seen him get beat down by the likes of T.O. and others, and i think anyone who needs to talk that much and use a white board to make a plea to get sent to the pro bowl is a loser. I think his ego actually effects his play. Once he gets beat hes more worried about it being on sports center than the upcoming play.He gets his picks, but any respectable "analyst" knows that is decieving. Tory James and Deltha O'neal anyone?

Anyways, if anyone can come across any hard evidence about td's given up, post a link.

Does anyone else think that we should start giving Ware more opportunities on the strong side? If we start utilizing him on both sides of the field, we should be able to create better match ups... no?

That was the beauty about watching Lawrence Taylor play in the day. They would line him up all over the field and take advantage of mismatches. I thought that's what BP and Zim were going to do with him this year. If you move him around, you'll keep the offense guessing.

Wouldn't it be perfect if Bill brings something like that out with Ware for this game? It'll be something no other offense has seen us do all year, and that is what causes us to beat the Colts. That would be fantastic.

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"You know what charm is: a way of getting the answer yes without having asked any clear question."
Albert Camus

Wouldn't it be perfect if Bill brings something like that out with Ware for this game? It'll be something no other offense has seen us do all year, and that is what causes us to beat the Colts. That would be fantastic.

Ware has lined up on the strong side other times this season. Portis' TD run is an easy ine to point out.

Well, we do know that putting Ware on the SS was something the coaching staff was thinking about doing when we were analyzing the possiblility of drafting Manny Lawson.

The more I think about the idea, the more I like it. It's high time we start giving Burnett more PT. He's not only last year's second round pick, but good things happen when he is in the game. His versatility complements Ware perfectly as he has the versatility to switch sides as well.

I know we drafted Carp to play SOLB, but I like the move BP has done putting him at WILB. Carp reminds me of a Mike Vrabel type. Another versatile LB who used to play WILB, but has moved to SOLB with the addition of Seau.

One package that I was thinking about was having Carp, Burnett and Ware in all at one time in addition to Bradie. With that alignment, you could actually line DMW inside as well, and really get creative with some offset formations and different things. That way they would never be able to determine pre-snap where Ware is going to be. I know that doing things of this nature usually leads to breakdowns in the defense because of communication and unfamiliarity by the players being moved around, but it just seems that if we could give Peyton some different looks, make him have to wonder where DMW is going to be on any given play, and also get DeMarcus lined up against the weaker pass protecting guards - a la Merriman last year where he dismantled Lilja on multiple plays - then we would have a chance to create some confusion on Petyon's part.

I don't know, it just seems very disappointing to me that the coaching staff has decided to play it safe so damn much this year. I mean, we're giving up big plays anyway with our safeties keeping their heads lodged squarely up their sphincters, so why not take some chances that might lead to us actually have some corresponding big plays of our own? It's just really frustrating to watch, because I just know that Ware would flourish if given a chance to "tee-off" on the QB for long stretches.

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Originally Posted by 21ST

He was protecting his self

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Originally Posted by tjsunstein

From what? His leg?

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Originally Posted by Paranoidmoonduck

That leg has had it out for him since day 1.

"We're the quiet guys, the guys before the storm. And then we hit you."

Well, we do know that putting Ware on the SS was something the coaching staff was thinking about doing when we were analyzing the possiblility of drafting Manny Lawson.

The more I think about the idea, the more I like it. It's high time we start giving Burnett more PT. He's not only last year's second round pick, but good things happen when he is in the game. His versatility complements Ware perfectly as he has the versatility to switch sides as well.

I know we drafted Carp to play SOLB, but I like the move BP has done putting him at WILB. Carp reminds me of a Mike Vrabel type. Another versatile LB who used to play WILB, but has moved to SOLB with the addition of Seau.

Just to add on...i'm sure everyone here remembers when Ware lined up on the SS, then the TE went in motion....as he followed him to the other side he jumped the line and got the sack...not sure exactly what game...but the way that play went will stand out in my mind for awhile...perfectly executed.

Is Parcells still looking to play Carp as ILB in the future. Or is he going to try to develop him as a OLB?

Nothing has really be said aside from parcells mentioning he doesn't like the idea of carp holding up against the run for a whole game...doesn't believe he has the strength at this point. He also said he had a niche playing inside....and wanted to use him more in the nickle....could have a similar role to Burnett.

Found a great article on how to stop the Colts offense. It makes alot of sense to me and if I were a betting man I see this exact thing happening.

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How do you stop the Colt's offense? That's the question for Dallas this week. So with that in mind, I went back and watched the Bills-Colts game from last weekend. Buffalo held them to 17 points and were in the game the whole way. Here's what I observed.

I've never seen a team play one basic defensive formation for 90% of their plays on the field. No exaggeration. The Bills lined up in the same spots, play after play, using a 4-3-4 or 4-2-5 defense. Coach Parcells discussed how the Colts' formations and packages are very simple, it's true - more on that in a minute - but that allowed the Bills to run the same basic formation and they had no problems with the no-huddle, because they only subbed for one position almost every play.

The Bills lined up with four down linemen, and three linebackers or two linebackers and an extra cornerback, and a basic secondary set. If they thought it was a running down, they had three linebackers on the field, with one of the outside guys covering the TE, about three yards off the ball. The other two would line up in the middle about 5 yards deep. They ran that same formation constantly. When they thought it was a passing down, they subbed in a cornerback for the outside linebacker to cover the TE, usually Dallas Clark. Same formation exactly, only one substitution on defense. The corners were mostly lining up very deep on Harrison and Wayne, only occasionally would they roll-up tight for press coverage. The safeties were sitting back deep in Cover-2.

So they were essentially covering Dallas Clark with a cornerback, they were playing very loose in coverage, and the linebackers were lining up deep with only seven men in the box, and the box covered a lot of ground in this defense. They were begging the Colts to run the ball. If you have your linebackers five yards deep, that's an open invitation to run. So the Colts ran, to the tune of five yards per carry. But this was the key, they never busted off one of those long runs, the 20+ yarders that really change a game.

When the Colts threw the ball, Manning was constantly dumping off to his backs and his TE's underneath, and running screens. His longest pass of the day was only 23 yards, that was the only 20+ yarder that he threw all day, and he only averaged 6 yards a pass. So the effect was a running game that was biting off medium yardage every time, a pass offense that was content to play underneath, and a team that methodically drove the ball.

One more thing, I can count the times the Bills blitzed on one hand. They rushed 4 guys almost exclusively. They didn't sack Manning and they only applied a limited amount of pressure, occasionally making him throw before he wanted to, but Manning had a lot of time to throw the ball.

The Colts on offense are so simple but so deadly effective. They lineup with Marvin Harrison on the right side, Reggie Wayne on the left side, one RB (Addai/Rhodes) and use two TE's, either both on the line or one split-out, that being Dallas Clark. They flip the TE's with Clark lining up in the slot on either side. Occasionally they'll line up with 4-wide. When Manning comes to the line he'll reposition either a TE or the RB, and they're off. There's never any motion, or exotic formations, they're just a well-oiled machine.

So what the Bills did on defense was all designed to not get beat deep, keep everything in front of them, make sure tackles, and hope to turn the ball over a couple of times. The Colts scoring drives took 9 plays twice and 13 plays once. The hope is that by making them run so many plays on their drives, they'll mess up somewhere, and they did fumble the ball twice. It's hard to get a turnover if they're marching 65-yards in four plays for a TD.

Buffalo ran into a problem, though, mainly their offense. They probably did the right thing by sticking with the run, but you have to pass somewhat effectively, and they only did on a couple of drives. It wasn't enough, even with Anthony Thomas - yes, the A-train and former Cowboy - dropping a c-note on the Colts run defense. I mean does the A-train plus Lee Evans and Peerless Price, with J.P. Losman at QB, strike fear into your heart? I didn't think so. But the Cowboys have a much more potent offense, so would a combination of the Bills defensive plan and the Cowboys offense be enough to defeat the undefeated? Maybe we'll find out, it depends on how Parcells plans to attack the Colts.

We ran a similar defensive scheme some of the time on Sunday against the Cardinals. We brought in Aaron Glenn to cover the 3rd receiver and removed an OLB, leaving three down linemen and one OLB lined up close to the line of scrimmage. Essentially we were creating a 4-man line, with 2 linebackers and 5 defensive backs. Aaron Glenn might be assigned to Dallas Clark, or they might move Newman to the slot, though my guess is they keep him outside on Marvin Harrison. I can guarantee you it won't be as easy for the Colts to run on our defense as it was to run on Buffalo's.

So the Bills used the conservative, play loose and deep approach to stopping the Colts. There's another school of thought that says attack the Colts, be very aggressive and get in Manning's face. The Chargers and the Steelers, two 3-4 teams, did that and got good results. My only problem is that both of those team's natural tendency is to play that way every week. Dallas doesn't do that, they use a more conservative 3-4 scheme, and haven't been very successful getting pressure from their blitzes. With a secondary vulnerable to the big play, especially at safety, I'm not sure if the aggressive blitzing approach would work for the Cowboys.

I would suggest they mimic the Bill's blueprint to some extent, except I wouldn't play as deep at linebacker as they were, and I would take a few more chances than they did in the pass rush. But making Manning work for scores using drives with a high play-count gives the Cowboys defense opportunities to get turnovers. It also keeps the clock moving with Indy running the ball and using short passes, possibly giving the Colts one or two fewer shots on offense. If Dallas can run the ball while mixing in some effective passing, then they can really shorten the game. That just may be the ticket to victory.

If we can hold Indy to 17 points, I like our chances.

Random notes:

The Colts still use the stretch play where they loop the guard and/or tackle around the edge, and let the TE and center handle the two down linemen on that side. They also run the middle draw quite a bit.

Peyton Manning will work the middle of the field to death given the opportunity. Bradie James and Akin Ayodele better be ready, and they also need to watch Addai and Rhodes on patterns in the flats and underneath. The Colts will run the screen to RB's and TE's, so the Cowboys need to recognize these plays as they form.

If Bob Sanders plays, the Colts are much tougher against the run. If Brandon Stokely plays, the offense will probably have a few more wrinkles.

Just to add on...i'm sure everyone here remembers when Ware lined up on the SS, then the TE went in motion....as he followed him to the other side he jumped the line and got the sack...not sure exactly what game...but the way that play went will stand out in my mind for awhile...perfectly executed.

I loved that play, but I don't think he got the sack. I am pretty sure the QB dumped the ball off to the running back. I think it was against Jacksonville, in the opener.

Yeah, that's what he said a while back. I like Fisher, but I'm not sold on him coming here just yet. Besides, all this is conjecture now because we have a coach. It just makes you wonder. I would like someone to come in with a 3-4 background though.

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"You know what charm is: a way of getting the answer yes without having asked any clear question."
Albert Camus

Somebody already said that. Anyway, I don't expect anythi ng from him, we still need a NT. Bad. Looking at the Depth Chart, JayRatliff is listid as #2 at NT. Do you guys think he has what it takes to not only play NT, but be a good player there if Fergeson goes down?